Chapter 222: Changes in Supernatural Power, Greatly Increased Effects

The Nightmare Prayer Divine Ability is not some method of soul control, but a more sophisticated and subtle manipulation of memory and cognition. Once cast, it is as if a Thought Imprint has been branded upon others, and neither outsiders nor the subjects themselves can perceive it.

Under the influence of the Divine Ability, in the eyes of the two women, Lu Yuan is not only a like-minded person but also someone absolutely worthy of trust.

Su Lingyue is fine, as she has only recently been affected by this Divine Ability, but Qin Ruoning lived and cultivated alongside Lu Yuan for over eight years at Xiantai Mountain in the lower realm, and there seems to be some inexplicable change in how she treats their relationship.

"No need."

Although he is not sure if Qin Ruoning is trying to compete with Su Lingyue, Lu Yuan has no time to pay attention to such things:

"We can talk about touring the Immortal City later. I will first return to Bai Qianfeng's cave dwelling and family residence to take a look, so as not to arouse suspicion."

Su Lingyue nods, but Qin Ruoning suddenly says:

"Fellow Daoist Lu, Bai Qianfeng keeps more than one concubine in his cave dwelling. You must be cautious when returning to his dwelling, lest his concubines notice any clues."

This remark sounds like a reminder, and the corner of Lu Yuan's mouth twitches:

"Many thanks for the reminder, Fellow Daoist Qin. I understand."

Afterward.

The three of them immediately part ways, and as immortal light rises, they fly off in different directions.

The Reception Array is set up on a mountain peak converted into rental cave dwellings. After flying out, Lu Yuan immediately sees an exceptionally magnificent and mysterious giant city sitting on the earth outside the mountain peak.

Unlike mortal cities, the entire Longshan Immortal City covers an area of fully two hundred miles. The outermost zone is inhabited by mortals, the inner zone is where rogue cultivators and low-level cultivators live, and it is equipped with various shops and trading areas. The core area of the Immortal City is where the cave dwellings and residences of the city's high-level figures and major cultivation families are located.

The core area of the Immortal City is also the place where the spiritual energy of the Spirit Pulse is most dense. The cave dwelling of True Monarch Huanglong, the controller of this Immortal City, is on the highest peak within the city, Linglong Peak.

As for other Golden Core Real Persons and even families, they can only set up cave dwellings and residences around Linglong Peak. Like Bai Qianfeng's cave dwelling, it is located on the periphery of the core area, on Chiyue Peak.

Before long, a mountain peak covered in fiery red maple trees appears in his field of vision, and around the foot of the mountain are patches of family residences belonging to the Bai family.

Lu Yuan's heart stirs and he descends. As he approaches the mountain peak, spiritual light suddenly blooms; it is the mountain-protecting array sensing a cultivator approaching and activating spontaneously.

The mountain-protecting array set up by Bai Qianfeng is also a third-tier array. Just like needing to unlock a door to enter one's home, Lu Yuan, who has inherited everything, naturally knows how to deal with it. With a wave of his hand, he tosses out a Circular Disk and then casts a Dharma formula.

After this operation, the spiritual light of the array covering the mountain ripples, and then it spontaneously reveals a passage made of cloud vapor. Lu Yuan steps into it leisurely and then drifts down to the summit.

Upon landing at the summit, the first thing he sees is an exceptionally imposing cave dwelling. It also has a protective array to prevent other cultivators from breaking in, but this time, before he can even act, the spiritual light outside the dwelling dissipates spontaneously. Then, two enchanting women dressed in palace attire with alluring figures walk out of the dwelling with several maids, flying toward him with joyful expressions:

"Master, you have finally returned!"

"You dead man, you made us wait so bitterly!"

Fragrant wind brushes his face as two delicate bodies throw themselves into his arms, and Lu Yuan's expression appears slightly stiff.

Bai Qianfeng was a man who indulged in pleasure and lust, never having anything to do with an ascetic cultivator. Not long after stepping into the Golden Core stage, he successively took two beauties from small families as concubines. Things like indulging in debauchery and wanton behavior in broad daylight were commonplace.

Of course, Bai Qianfeng was also quite generous to his concubines. Like the two he took, besides having outstanding appearances, their cultivation talent was also quite good. He spent a fortune using Pills to feed both concubines up to the Foundation Establishment stage, which also made the two women quite devoted to him.

However, at this moment, he can only forcibly suppress the urge to push the two women away, wrapping his arms around their fragrant shoulders and laughing heartily, completely in the tone of Bai Qianfeng:

"My two wives, after several years of separation, have you missed your husband?"

The two beautiful women have watery eyes, and with a coquettish look, they lightly pinch Lu Yuan's chest:

"Need you ask? We sisters have missed you so much we couldn't sleep, and we've both grown quite thin!"

"Master looks to be in good spirits. Was the matter entrusted by the True Monarch completed successfully? You've been gone for several years without any news; I wonder what you were doing?"

Lu Yuan walks into the cave dwelling swaggeringly while holding the two concubines:

"Of course, but as it concerns secrets, I cannot disclose it to you yet. Have you looked after the cave dwelling well during the time I was away?"

Bai Qianfeng's cave dwelling is extremely large, with a guest hall, study, bedroom, meditation room, alchemy room, talisman room, herb garden, and so on. The two concubines speak in coquettish tones, vying to claim credit:

"Rest assured, Master, we have taken excellent care of the spiritual plants in your herb garden, especially that purple orchid fragrant leaf; it has already grown four flower leaves, and it won't be long before it can be used to make medicine."

"Not to mention other places; under our supervision, no one dared to approach, and it has remained exactly as it was. Master, tell us, how will you reward us?"

Lu Yuan laughs heartily:

"Good, good, good! I will give you your reward right now!"

Having said that, he picks up the two enchanting concubines and, leaving the maids behind, drifts toward the bedroom.

The maids are clearly very familiar with Bai Qianfeng's style; they only blush slightly at this, then disperse, not following them.

Just like that.

The two coquettish concubines are brought back to the bedroom by Lu Yuan. Just as the two are about to help Lu Yuan undress with amorous eyes and engage in a passionate encounter, they are met with a pair of cold, indifferent eyes like a deep abyss.

Under the activation of the Nightmare Prayer Divine Ability, the two concubines, who are only at the Foundation Establishment stage, instantly have vacant eyes, lose their consciousness, and sit there blankly.

Lu Yuan feels a sense of relief, moves their snowy arms away, and looks helpless.

This is the drawback of wearing Bai Qianfeng's skin; he is forced to passively accept the other party's social relationships. Fortunately, he possesses the Nightmare Prayer Divine Ability; otherwise, to hide his identity, he might have had to bite the bullet and lose his chastity to accept the concubines' service.

"However, the Spiritual Machine here is truly dense..."

In his memory, this cave dwelling of Bai Qianfeng is also equipped with a Juling Array, and the concentration of spiritual energy is much denser than the outside world. Lu Yuan thinks for a moment and immediately activates Nine Breaths Serving Qi.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...

And this time, just as he forms the thought, he feels as if he has become a whale in the deep sea. With a casual opening of his mouth, endless spiritual energy, like a vast ocean, pours into every cell of his body, and is then rapidly refined by the Nine Breaths Serving Qi Divine Ability, turning into Dharma Power.

Exhale, inhale.

After nine consecutive cycles, the bedroom where he is located seems to have turned into a huge abyssal vortex, absorbing the vast spiritual energy and Original Qi of this realm. The effect is two times greater than when he cast it in the lower realm!

After nine breaths, feeling the suddenly surging and significantly increased Dharma Power in his body, Lu Yuan cannot help but open his eyes wide. His eyes flash with spiritual light, and he is quite pleasantly surprised:

"What an astonishing effect!"

"It seems that because the environment is different, the effect of Nine Breaths Serving Qi in absorbing void Original Qi is also vastly different!"

The environment of the lower realm was like a desert that had been arid for ten thousand years; when using Nine Breaths Serving Qi, he was completely unable to absorb any spiritual energy from the surrounding environment and could only absorb Original Qi from the deeper void.

And here in the Yuanling Heaven of the Upper Realm, where the Spiritual Machine is dense, using Nine Breaths Serving Qi can not only extract void Original Qi but also absorb a large amount of the ubiquitous Heaven and Earth Spiritual Machine, causing the effect of casting this Divine Ability to far exceed that of the lower realm!

The cultivation efficiency boost brought by Nine Breaths Serving Qi is already unparalleled, and doubling it again makes Lu Yuan feel a bit shocked.

"Sure enough, the effort spent ascending to the Upper Realm was not in vain."

Lu Yuan is in high spirits:

"I was not far from the middle stage of Refining Qi into Spirit to begin with. At this rate, it will only take a year or two to break through, and in another ten or twenty years, I will be able to enter the late stage or even perfection. By then, I will be able to walk sideways in the Upper Realm..."

The Spirit Severing realm of this world should be roughly equivalent to the perfection stage of Refining Qi into Spirit in the Guiding Technique.

The absolute peak existences in the entire Yuanling Heaven are those few Return to Void Great Abilities; if one possesses the cultivation of a perfected Refining Qi into Spirit, coupled with various Supernatural Powers, it is no exaggeration to say one can walk sideways in this world.

He thought for a moment.

After waiting for a while.

Lu Yuan's thoughts stirred slightly, leaving the two dazed and vacant concubines in disarray, then he used his Supernatural Power to implant memories; their eyes flickered rapidly, and after a moment, they returned to calm.

While still in a daze, the intelligence in their eyes gradually returned, and as their gazes shifted toward Lu Yuan, they acted as if they had just experienced a great battle, blushing and coquettishly chiding:

"Master, you are so bad!"

Lu Yuan put on an appearance of tidying his clothes, and just as he was about to speak, the communication bell in the room gave a soft ring; he pointed at it from a distance, and the maid's report came through the bell:

"Master, the head of the Bai family and several other Elders know you have returned and have come to the cave dwelling to visit; shall I invite them in?"

Although Bai Qianfeng is currently the only Golden Core Real Person of the Bai family, his parents perished in a Corpse Tide before he had grown to adulthood, and he only reached this step thanks to the family's upbringing and cultivation.

The family head and Elders are all elders of Bai Qianfeng, and they contributed greatly when he broke through to the Golden Core realm, so although Bai Qianfeng has an eccentric temperament, he still respects these people immensely.

Therefore, Lu Yuan immediately said:

"Invite them to the guest room to wait for a moment; I will be there shortly."

Having said this, he gave a word to the concubines on the bed, immediately left the bedroom, and headed toward the guest hall.

By the time he arrived in the hall, several old men with white hair and beards were already waiting; seeing his arrival, they all stood up in unison, their faces filled with joyful smiles:

"Qianfeng, you have finally returned. Have you been well?"

"True Monarch Huanglong summoned you away for seven or eight years without a word, and the entire Bai family has been very worried. We wonder where exactly he sent you?!"

Lu Yuan politely returned their greetings one by one, and only after inviting the old men to sit did he say:

"Many thanks to the family head and all the Elders for your concern. This mission I carried out was just a bit time-consuming, but I did not encounter any danger. As for where I went to carry out the mission, because True Monarch had given instructions, I cannot disclose it to you all for the time being."

"Understood, understood!"

The current family head, Bai Hesong, said repeatedly:

"Since True Monarch has given instructions, we will not ask. Now that you have returned safely, everyone in the family can rest easy."

Seeing that the other Bai family Elders were echoing this while seeming to have more to say, Lu Yuan could not help but ask:

"I see the other Elders seem to have something to say; why, has something happened in the Bai family during the years I was away?"

Bai Hesong sighed and said:

"There have indeed been quite a few things. One is that in recent years we have had constant friction with the Song family; there have been many conflicts both inside and outside the Immortal City. They rely on having one more Golden Core Real Person than our Bai family to act tyrannically, seizing spirit fields, and even indulging their clansmen in committing crimes and injuring many of our clansmen. But because we could not contact you, we could only endure it for now.

However, compared to this, another matter is even more important: your cousin Bai Chengjin reached the perfection of Foundation Establishment a few years ago. Although he only has a middle-grade Spirit Root and is already over sixty, he has always been a late bloomer. If he has the assistance of Golden Core spiritual items, a Condensing Crystal Pill, and the like, there is still a not-insignificant chance he can step into the Golden Core realm.

But the Condensing Crystal Pill and other Golden Core spiritual items are extremely precious; we have no channels at all, and even the news we hear is very outdated, so we wanted to ask you to use your connections to inquire and see what price must be paid to obtain one."

Lu Yuan feigned contemplation and said:

"Just inquiring about news is no problem. The Alchemy Hall of the Immortal City releases one or two Condensing Crystal Pills every ten years; if one has enough Merit, they can be exchanged. As for whether one can encounter other Golden Core spiritual items, it all depends on luck. I can only do my best to help the family inquire.

As for the conflict with the Song family... since my cousin has hopes of breaking through to Golden Core, it is not appropriate for us to tear off the mask with them for now. When my cousin becomes a Golden Core Real Person, it will not be too late to settle scores with them."

Family head Bai Hesong and the other Elders immediately nodded and said:

"These words are reasonable. Compared to some minor conflicts, Chengjin's breakthrough is more important!"

"Once our Bai family has one more Golden Core Real Person, our voice in this Longshan Immortal City will surely increase greatly; when that time comes, we will settle old and new accounts with them together!"

"Although the Song family's ancestor is at the mid-stage Golden Core cultivation, he is already old and likely does not have many years left to live. Once he dies, we can deal with the Song family however we like!"

Wherever there are people, there is a jianghu. There are nearly ten million mortals in Longshan Immortal City, and nearly one hundred thousand cultivators. Even though they face the threat of catastrophe, the internal power struggles between various factions never cease; situations like that of the Song family and the Bai family are not rare.

Lu Yuan, an impostor, naturally did not care at all about the life or death of the Bai family, but on the surface, he still nodded and said:

"Good, then I will mobilize my connections as soon as possible to inquire about the Condensing Crystal Pill and Golden Core spiritual items. Once there is news, I will notify the family head and all the Elders."

Bai Hesong and the other Elders revealed smiles and said politely:

"This concerns the future of the Bai family; everything is entrusted to you, Qianfeng."

"You have just returned to the Immortal City and need to rest, so we will not disturb you any further."

"Whether the matter succeeds or not, we thank you here on behalf of your cousin."

After some thanks, these clan elders no longer lingered and rose one after another to take their leave.

After personally seeing them off outside the cave dwelling and watching these people ride their immortal light down the mountain, Lu Yuan's brows furrowed slightly, his eyes flashing.

He suddenly realized that although he had successfully bluffed his way into the Upper Realm wearing the mask of Bai Qianfeng, the various relationships of this identity seemed likely to bring him all sorts of trouble.

Where there are relatives and friends, there are opponents and enemies, and he did not ascend to the Upper Realm to clean up Bai Qianfeng's messes.

"Perhaps, I must find a way to change my identity again..."

As the thought flashed by, Lu Yuan turned and returned to the cave dwelling, a decision faintly forming in his heart.